Thursday, February 3, 2011

What Color Was Abraham?

That is a question that I am often asked. The answer, based on the evidence of Biblical Anthropology (a science), is that Abraham resembled his Nilo-Saharan cattle-herding ancestors whose skin tone was reddish brown. Were we able to test Abraham's DNA, we likely would find that he is in Haplogroup R1b (Y-DNA). Read more here.

Alice C. Linsley

Abraham was s a descendant of Adam, whose skin was reddish. Abraham also belonged to the royal priestly caste of Horites, among whom there were red, black and olive complexions. Abraham ruled in ancient Edom which the Greeks called "Idumea", meaning land of red people. Abraham's territory was entirely in the region of Edom. It extended between Hebron in the north to Beersheba in the south.

Edo, Edomite, Idoma and Idumea are related words. A variant of Edo is Idu. Idu was the progenitor of the Edo or Idoma of Benin. The ruler of the Edo is called Oba and the first ruler of Petra in Edom was Obodas. Among the Ainu of Hokkaido the regional ruler is called obito and the original name of Tokyo was Edo.

The Oba, ruler of the Edo of Benin

One of Abraham's descendants was Edom or Esau because he was red. The clan of Seir the Horite (Gen. 36) were Edomites, and as with all the Horites had common physical features because they practiced endogamy.
Abraham's grandson Esau inherited his grandfather's red skin tone. We do not know Jacob's coloring, but he may have been darker skinned than Esau. King David is described as ruddy, and as a boy probably looked like this young man.

Having a red skin tone indicates a very ancient genetic lineage, going back at least 18,000 years (Haplogroup R1b). The Biblical writers appear to have been aware of this. The term "red' involves a range of tones from red-brown to brown-red, as shown in the photos below.

Of course, exposure to the sun affects the skin. In his younger years, when he traveled more, Abraham might have been a darker red-brown like the Beja men shown below:

That said, none can be certain as to Abraham's skin tone, but it is evident that he was not a white European. He was a descendant of Ham and Kush, through Nimrod, and he resided most of his life in Egypt, Canaan and Arabia. Abraham was also a descendant of Shem, but since the lines of Ham and Shem exclusively intermarried, their descendants would have had similar skin tone.

To answer the question, "What color was Abraham?" I suggest that his skin color was like that of the Beja of Sudan, most Egyptians, and the Dravidians of India. All of these peoples are ethnically Kushite. We are not talking about race here, only skin tone. Genetically humans are 99.7% the same and the term "race" is biologically meaningless.

Abraham's Kushites Spread Far and Wide

Abraham's Kushite people spread across vast areas of Africa, the Middle East, the Levant, Europe, India and as far as India, Nepal and Cambodia. Kushites also came to live in Mindanao in the Philippines.

Genesis 17:5 says that Abraham means “father of many” or “father of a multitude.” Abraham was indeed the father of many since he had many children by his two wives and his two concubines.

As Abraham and his people were of Kushite or Nilotic origin, we can call them Africans. Here is what we must remember when we consider African populations: Geneticist, Kenneth Kidd, was said, “In almost any single African population or tribe, there is more genetic variation than in all the rest of the world put together."

“Africans have the broadest spectrum of variability, with rarer versions at either end [of the bell curve distribution]. If everyone in the world was wiped out except Africans, almost all human genetic variability would be preserved.” (From here.)

As the Kushites and Nilotic peoples spread across the ancient Near East, and married with other populations the genetic variation became less. The farther the populations is from Africa, the less genetic diversity. This is not necessarily true, however, for the Biblical Horites (Horim) because these ruler-priest lines exclusively intermarried.

Horite Social Structure

Among Abraham's Horite people social status and occupation were passed from father to son, but the son's ethnicity was that of his mother. It is important to know the ethnicity of the mothers to understand the ethnic complexity of Abraham's descendants.

By Sarah, Abraham had Isaac, the father of Israel. By Keturah, he had six sons and the first-born was Joktan, an Arabian with ties to the people of Sheba. The Joktanite Tribes of Arabia are his descendants. By his concubine Hagar, he had Ishmael of Al-Paran, an Egyptian, and by his other concubine Masek, he had Eliezar. Masek was Keturah's maidservant, just as Hagar was Sarah's maidservant.

We are not told how many daughters Abraham had, but it is certain that he had daughters as well as sons. His daughters are not named because the genealogies list only first-born sons, those who would rule.

The Hebrew form of Abraham is Avraham. A variant of the name – Abram – means high father, indicating a man of high estate, a fact recognized by the Hittites who referred to Abraham as “a prince among us” when he approached them about buying land to bury Sarah (Gen. 23:6).

The most likely explanation for the name Abraham is the most obvious. Ham in Arabic means burnt. Abraham means “burnt father” and refers to his skin color. The Nilotic peoples were referred to as burnt. Abraham was a descendant of Ham and Shem because the royal lines of Ham and Shem intermarried exclusively. These ancestors of Abraham were Kushites and their skin color ranged from black to reddish brown.

King David, one of Abraham’s most famous descendants, was said to be of a burnt skin color. He is described as ruddy, which means that he had a reddish skin tone like that of Egyptians who work in the sun (I Sam. 16:12; 17:42). The Hebrew word for ruddy is adom and it is related to the word edom and to the word adam. God formed the man "Adam" from the red clay which swept down into the Nile Valley from the Ethiopian highlands.

The Hebrew adam is related to the Hamitic/Hausa word odum, meaning red-brown. The story of the creation of the first man comes from the Nile and probably dates to the time before the Kushite rulers. It indicates that Abraham and his Ainu people had a red skin tone.

38 comments:

Anonymous
said...

Alice,

I agree that genetics is probably a more important factor with regards to skin color, but the genetic code may have been somewhat different than it is today. You have to remember that man was one race at this time, and that the influence of genetics from many races had not yet happened. When God divided the languages of man at the Tower of Babel, man was still one race. When God created Adam and Eve and embedded genetic code within them, it is possible that He gave the code the ability to adapt to changes in climent and environment, especially when man began to travel into different regions on earth. We do know that the clans and tribes of man were related to the sons of man born at this time. For example, Ham, the Hamites, Shem, the Semites, Japheth the Japhethites, etc... Other clans and tribes came into being from the sons of Ham, Shem, and Japheth. By the time Jacob was born, there were many clans and tribes living in a number of regions on earth. Did they have different skin colors? Possbibly. The change in genetic code did happen because we can see in our day and age that there are many different races with different colored skin tones living in different regions on earth. Truthfully, the color of Abraham's skin is irrelevant. The focus should be on his relationship with God, on God's covenant with him, and on God's promise to make him and his descendants into a nation that would serve Him (God).

The Tower of Babel story speaks of real historical developments. Apparently, the linguistic divergence to which the story alludes began at least five generations before Abraham.

The intermarriage of the Aramean lines of Eber and the Afro-Arabian lines Sheba indicates that wives were chosen from kin living in distant territories (as happened with Jacob/Jospeh and Moses). This marriage structure parallels that of the lines of Cain and Seth, and the lines of Ham and Shem.

When Genesis 11:1 speaks of the whole world having one language, it speaks from the perspective of the Afro-Asiatics. It is not speaking of all peoples and languages. The languages listed in Genesis 10 are all Afro-Asiatic and languages of peoples living in the Levant which was controlled by Afro-Asiatic rulers. The Afro-Asiatic family is the oldest known language family. This is proof of the reliability of the Geneis record. For example, were the Polynesians and Eskimos listed here, we would know that someone had corrupted the text, since these peoples were not known by Abraham's ancestors.

According to genetics, each mature reproductive cell carries a gene for every characteristic inherited from a previous mature cell. The genes that are dominant in the development of the embryo also dominate the characteristics (hair, eye, and skin color; facial and body features, and metabolism) of the unborn child. When the child is born, he or she will exhibit the characteristics of his or her parents. If both parents have black hair with blue eyes and white skin tones, then the child will have black hair, blue eyes, and white skin tones.

Today, the scientific community does not believe that different geographical locations, changes in climate and weather patterns, or changes in the geophysical nature of the earth have anything to do with the changes that have taken place in the genetic code of man. They do believe that inter-marriage and inter-breeding among family groups has caused changes to the code, which is evident in the variety of people on earth today.

Biblical historians believe that sin caused definite changes in man's heart towards God, in his unwillingness to be associated with God, and in his defiance against God to satisfy his own lusts and desires. Has sin affected the genetic code of man to the point where mutation within it changed the characteristics of man? Only God knows the answer to this question.

Today, there are number of people living on the earth with different hair, eye, and skin colors, facial and body features, and metabolisms. Will mutuations in the genetic code of man continue to take place as man gives birth to new offspring? Only time will tell. God is the only individual who knows what the future will be like for man. One thing is certain, when He creates the new heaven and the new earth, man will once again be like God in His image without spot or blemish.

Genetic studies has shown that geographic distance from East Africa along ancient river and mountain routes is a predictor for the genetic diversity of present human populations. See the reseerach of Franck Prugnolle, Andrea Manica and François Balloux.

Populations farther from East Africa (the Nile) have lower genetic variability. In other words, one East African is genetically more different from another East African than a European is from another European. There was greater genetic diversity among Abraham's Nilotic ancestors than there is among Europeans, Asians and Native Americans.

NO. The question, "Has sin affected the genetic code of man to the point where mutation within in has changed the characteristis of man?," was hypothetical.

We both seem to agree that definite changes in the genetic code has taken place through the years from Adam to present day man. Mutations, and possibly changes in climate and in geographical locations, have played a role in the genetic makeup of man. Although certain aspects of the genetic code of man will continue to change, the original building blocks within that code will remain the same. Man will always be man created in God's image.

I have enjoyed our conversations on this subject! I should have known not to discuss this issue with an anthropologist. My intention was to give your readers other avenues to pursue to help them in their understanding of this subject.

All this talk of skin color is divisive and pointless as far as salvation is concerned. It's a tool used by Satan, to divide and not unite the body of Christ. We serve a God who is no respecter of persons, race, social status, etc - who loves all equally. Praise be to God.

Such discussion might make us uncomfortable but it is necessary and useful. Why is it divisive to discuss physical attributes?

This blog is dedicated to anthropological investigation of the Bible, beginning from the premise that we have reliable information in the text. The text mentions that David had a red skin tone. Why ignore this significant piece of information?

Indeed God is fair and just in all His judgments. This is what is meant by "no respecter of persons." He is the author of the races and ethnicities, and He even used pagan kings to fulfill His will (Cyrus).

He also announced the coming of His Son to a specific group of people who lived in Eden and we are given information about their appearance. That is of great anthropological interest and can help us to understand the origns of Messianic expectation.

I don't have a comment; I have a question? I am suppose to be afro- american.(Black) I chang color in the summer and in the winter. In thr summer I am very dark skinned and, in the winter I am a light brown skinned color and my hair is fine and wavey and very black. My mother was light brown with somewhat fine hair(between corse and fine maybe) and my father was dark skinned and corse hair.Both of my grandmothers had very fine hair,one with waves and the other with no waves.My grandfathers; one very dark skinned and the other brown skinned. can you explane to me why my skin color changes with the seasons. Don't get me, I am proud of my color, that I am black. I was just wondering why my skin color changes.And in the inside of my arms and under my clothes my skin color is very light.Please don't tell me I have some kind of skin problem because I know I don't, I have very nice skin.

Alice Linsley,,,you are a beautiful person with no alterior motives and i have just fallen upon your page,,,do you have any books that you have written,,,i am going to share your finding on my youtube account 'vera747',,is there anyway that i may have a live conversation with you,,,you have filled in many blanks for me as i have within the past 3 years been shown by the Most High as ezekiel 37 brings out that black-americans are a part of the lost-tribes of israel,,such has been hidden by the western powers and others to conceal our identity just as psalm 83:1-12 shows,,,yet now the Most High is making it known who the seed of abraham through isaac are,,,much of your information confirms what has already been shown to me,,,yet i love your links to the anthropology of the bible on the afro-asiatic origins of the bible,,,,bless you for your work,,,i sure would love to sit at your feet to learn,,,thank you

thanks so much for your truth,,,you truly have only a Godly agenda,,,i as a black-american have been allowed to know within my spirit that black americans are descendants of the lost tribes of israel, the afro-asiatic connection of the bible has been purposely expunged throughout the centuries in order to hide such information just as psalm 83:1-12 shows,,,your work has confirmed much of what the Most High has been showing me of myself and my people ezekiel 37 is happening to black americans at a high degree,,,zondervans bible dictionary alludes to this truth in describing hams offspring as being the progenitor of the dark races ethiopians, egyptians, lybians, cushites 'NOT THE NEGROES', i guess they were trying to say the negroes are of shemitic origins,,,'from babylon to timbuktu' by Rudolph r Windsor shares that the slaves taken from west africa were historically hebrews taken captive just as duetoronomy 38:15-68 prophesied,,,Do you have a book that i could purchase?,,i would love to speak with you in person if possible and sit at your feet to learn,,,i have a youtube channel where i hope to share your wisdom it is 'Vera747',,,bless you

I've been doing some research on this, and I have a question-- is there any sign of white men in the Bible? Is there any mention of white-skinned people (besides leprosy) or Germanic tribes? Any help is appreciated.

Genesis is not about these, as it details the lives of Afro-Asiatic rulers. These dispersed widely between 4000 and 1000 years ago and some intermarried with Europeans in areas such as Bulgaria and northwestern China. See the Just Genesis article on the Kush-Kushan Connection.

I just want to state my opinion on this subject. If you look at the table of nations in genesis you'll see that some of ham descendents names are found in Shem's list. WHY? They are one and the same. The difference is the doctrine. There is a science behind this. The red people are the "stars". It was/is symbolic. Abraham more than likely would be like a cushites in appearance. The cushites are dark people not as they are portayed today. The bible mentions them as tall and smooth of skin. Sudanse people are tall. Scriptures states can a cushite change his color. The reference to this indicates their skin. They are a dark people. Lam4:7-8 says the nobles were whiter than snow. The word for white is h6704. It means to glow dazzling. Then next it states more ruddy in body than rubbies (i'm reading from New King James version). Verse 8 tells us that they are now blacker than soot. Both verses use symbolism. The righteous shines like the stars (ruddy). The verse states they lost their luster. It is symbolic. The famine (lack from not getting the word of Yah) changed them. The interpretations most versions give is lacking.

how on earth can Abraham be an EDOMITE when EDOM or Esau is his grandchild? Edom is an Abramite, okay, but to call the ancestor by the descendants name makes me question all of the rest that follows...

This topic is new to me, I am African-American who grew up in the USA (South). This issue of skin color is interesting in this conversation to a point that it intrigues me and also somewhat frustrates me. Race is such a changed issue in some parts of the USA. The information you present is intriguing and enlightening, I must add that some Christians would never accept Abraham as one whose skin has red and or dark hues. Sone people may never be able to accept such and it would involve such a shift in thinking at many levels. When one, as a young child, only sees images of Abraham , etc. as white-- it may be hard for some to see him in any other way. The bigger issue is if one refuses to see Abraham as a person with skin tone that is dark with red hues-- what does that say about that person?

Anonymous, People are so poorly informed that they have a difficult time accepting reality. A study of molecular genetics, anthropology, linguistics, climate changes and migration reveal a very different picture of Abraham and his ancestors than people received in Sunday School, regardless of their ethnicity.

Africa is the point of origin of archaic humans, the ancestors of all humans living today. Why do we have so much diversity in appearance? Because that diversity existed from the beginning in Africa. Native Africans are brown, red, black, bluish-black, and yellow. Hair types vary also, as do anatomical features of the face, etc. To this day,Africa has the greatest genetic (and linguistic) diversity of any place on Earth. As peoples moved farther away from the point of origin, there developed less genetic and linguistic diversity. There are many studies to show that this is true. See these:

Do you have any thoughts on the possibility that Abraham and his family originated in what is now China? After all, the Bible refers to him as Avraham Ha'Ivri (Abraham from the East). Or alternatively, do you think it possible that Abraham's children (not Isaac) spread to China, as the Bible states that he sent them to the East.

Hello Alice,Would you have answers to my queries? Why are they so many lexical commonalities between Congo languages and the Hebrew language? Is it a mere coincidence, consanguinity or neighbourhood influences? Here are few examples to give you clues.The verb to marry in lingala (and kikongo) is exactly the same as in Hebrew: bala and baal, respectively. Kushite : in Ruund (Lunda) the words: mushit, shit (mashit) and kashit, just to name the three. They all relate to burning. The first, mushit, denotes a black hash resulting from the burning of grassland. The second, shit (pl. mashit), denotes a huge fire pit. It is often encountered during farming. The farmer assembles leftover branches in several groupings around the garden to burn them as they were not burned during the burning day. The third, kashit, is the diminutive of the second term (shit) meaning a small fire pit. Ruund people are known to have had ties with the ancient Egyptian, moreover Ruund and Kuba of the Democratic Republic of Congo bear biblical stories of the Tower of Babel and the drunkenness of Noah. Nkoond (nkuund) mean agriculturer, farmer or cultivator. We have Levite practices: marriage rituals, dietary code-forbidden animals, funeral code (chiefs do not attend burial and do not see dead bodies), royal musicians rotate on a weekly basis (ref. King David), the mention of chandelier of 7 lamps, one year royal investiture tour composed of steps similar to exodus (scattering called kamwangeen) the camp of flowing water where people ate quails and white paste some of them died for not obeying, the camp of metal bull, etc.

Nawej, You are correct in your observation of the close affinity of Hebrew words to African words. Hebrew is actually an African language, though most Jews would attempt to deny that. See these articles:

Abraham's cattle-herding ancestors came from the Nile Valley. Many peoples dispersed from there. Some went in Arabia and Syria, Southern Europe and some moved deeper into central Africa toward the great paleolakes that existed there during the African Humid Period (Late Holocence).

The priesthood, male and female circumcision, animal sacrifice, concern for ritual purity, the idea of deified rulers, expectation of an immortal Righteous Ruler... all these originated among Abraham's Proto-Saharan ancestors.

I've always felt something was "off" when you see Abraham, Isaac, David, Jesus etcetera., all being painted as very white men. It's nothing against that of course (I'm white). I just don't think it's very accurate ... it seems more likely that they were darker skinned, living in the Middle East.

I've heard of the term Edo for Ancient Japan. But I've never made the connection between Edo and Edom. In another one of your articles you said something about Abraham (or maybe Abraham's tribe) travelling to Northern Japan. I'm not an anthropologist, but don't you think that's a little out of the way from Judea?

Timothy, as you read material at my blogs, please keep in mind that my research continues daily and I may change my mind about something, depending on the data.

The Ainu originated in the Nile Valley and dispersed widely. There were Ainu/Anu among Abraham's Habiru ancestors. Biblical On (Heliopolis) was once an Ainu shrine city. Archaic humans were already dispersed globally before the time of Noah.

As for the question of race. anthropologists largely have dismissed this concept as it does not align with the data of molecular genetics. I recommend these two articles:

Hyksos are Early Arabs, Early Egyptians were black and dark brown to reddish brown exactly like the Hebrew Israelites, (exception was Noah who was an Albino), Edomites are Reddish to Albino are Hebrews BUT NOT Israelites! White Supremacists confuse thee original founding Egyptians with the conquering tribes that came though later. Joseph of the bible is portrayed dark black in ancient Egyptian paintings. Israelites AppearanceJer. 8:21Jer. 14:2Song Of Solomon 1:5,6Job 30:30Lam. 4:8Lam. 5:10Acts 13:1Exodus 4:6,7The Most High Yah (Daniel 7:9)Yahushua looked like YHWH (John 14:9, Rev. 1:14, Daniel 10:5) White Ashkenazi Jews, (Gen 10:1,3) and the Sephardic Jews, (2Kings17:24)

There is no evidence for Noah being "albino" in any credible sources. There are no ancient Egyptian paintings of Joseph, the son of Jacob.

The founders of the ancient Nile civilization were not Egyptians. It was the Kushite rulers who first united the Upper and Lower Nile. Their religion was that of their Proto-Saharan ancestors who built the shrine city of Nekhen (BC 4000-3500). Nekhen was a Horite shrine, that is, it was dedicated to Horus whose animal totem was the falcon.

I appreciate how you have given a very effective proof of genealogy to Mr.Bulang. in this regard, may i also know what may be the trace of the Igorot People where i belong? The Igorot's ancient history were of zero written articles, but we the younger generation had only heard from our dead olds that they had been engaged in human head sacrifices so that heaven would bestow them good harvest, safe hunting activities and protection of their villages from foreign attackers. They were also engaged in witchcraft and divination. They have god called Cabunyan whom they offered the human heads in high places called Dap-ay. My question is, if that Cabunyan is heavenly, why did it needed a human head which to us is killing activity?I have been searching who were ancient headhunters in World History but not satisfied because the thing i want to know is if there is a connectivity to Abraham's because most of Igorots now are Christians.

As a young child I visited an Igorot village in the mountains of Northern Luzon with my father. I have a photo graph of the chief standing next to my father. It is a wonderful photo and the chief is small in stature and my father was very tall. Both men are smiling.

My father told me that the chief had become a Christian and then all the people of the village did also.

The practice of head hunting and head shrinking was widespread. This ceremony was found in Asia, the South Pacific, the Americas, Southern Europe, in Africa, and among the Celts of Ireland.

To answer your question, I give you the words of the Egyptian Bishop St. Athanasius of Alexandria (296-373 AD), who wrote in his treatise on the Incarnation of the Word of God:

"But, as we have already seen, men, foolish as they are, thought little of the grace they had received, and turned away from God. They defiled their own soul so completely that they not only lost their apprehension of God, but invented for themselves other gods of various kinds. They fashioned idols for themselves in place of the truth and reverenced things that are not, rather than God Who is, as St. Paul says, "worshipping the creature rather than the Creator." Moreover, and much worse, they transferred the honor which is due to God to material objects such as wood and stone, and also to man; and further even than that they went, as we said in our former book. Indeed, so impious were they that they worshipped evil spirits as gods in satisfaction of their lusts. They sacrificed brute beasts and immolated men, as the just due of these deities, thereby bringing themselves more and more under their insane control. Magic arts also were taught among them, oracles in sundry places led men astray, and the cause of everything in human life was traced to the stars as though nothing existed but that which could be seen. In a word, impiety and lawlessness were everywhere, and neither God nor His Word was known. Yet He had not hidden Himself from the sight of men nor given the knowledge of Himself in one way only; but rather He had unfolded it in many forms and by many ways."

Alice,Thank you for your research on this subject matter. For a long time, people have wondered, argued and assumed certain positions on this subject and dare I say "Never did any research to back their position." I had speculations and thoughts, but I must admit, I didn't do research because I wasn't sure on where to start. I am a Pastor in Ohio, i post videos on YouTube, Facebook, Twitter, Livestream and any other avenue I can find. I also post writings and thoughts on Facebook talking about Scriptures and encouraging people to come to Jesus. With your permission, I'd like to use your information and name in one or many of my videos. You have opened my eyes to a greater understanding of the Biblical Characters (if I may use that terminology) and where my background began. My wife and I, just recently started searching for the truth of the "Identity" of the biblical characters. My Wife was the first to start because she has always said "She wanted to know who she was and Where did she come from?" I must give her much credit....because of her curiosity and searching out the truth, what she shared with me, inspired me to begin searching, now that I had a place to start. This morning I found what you wrote and I shared it with my Wife, and she has found interest in your work also.What I will use from your work is....Your quotes and give a list of your Blogs. I DARE NOT TAKE ANY OF YOUR WORK OR WORDS OUT OF CONTEXT! For what you said has enlightened me, and I wish to introduce others to what you have researched.

Thank you so much for your information! God Bless,Pastor Deron Wilson SHALOM SHALOM!

Alice,It is sometime since my emailing you & my first time doing so publicly.You will recall my not having much time for religion of any kind but your article on the colour of Abraham was of great interest to me and leads me on to the following.It is my understanding that a recent television titled "The Bible" has been aired in the US. Whether or not there has been a UK broadcast of "The Bible" is unknown but then yours truly does not watch the box very much.Coming to the point, I gather this series cast Samson as a very black man and has prompted much discussion as to whether this was actually so. Taking together your material re. the Natufian plus that of Abraham and coupling it with Amos (Hebrews as Ethiopians/Kushites), Tacitus (Jews as Ethiopians), Paul (a Jew as Egyptian), etc, it seems to me certain comments can be made.One is that if Jesus were alive in the 20th c., there would be little doubt he would have fallen foul of the segregationalist laws of the US Deep South and the equally seperatist laws of Apartheid-era South Africa on dark skin colour.Another comment is that from the remarks by messrs. Garrod plus Keith re. the Natufian skeletons to those of the other cited writers re. the Africoid nature of the Israelites/Hebrews/Jews brings me back to Samson.Samson has much in common with Hercules. Equally to the point it seems the muscleman/giant image, the seven strands of braided hair dark/very dark (?) skin is shared Great Head No. 2 at the Olmec Culture site of Tres Zapotes (Mex.)Regards,Harry

Thank you for this insightful comment, Harry. In reality, as is shown by molecular genetics, the very concept of "race" is a false one. There are genetic types and ranges of physical appearance associated with the various types or haplogroups. That said, all living humans have African ancestry.

I myself have always been curious about ancient history and how the biblical narrative of genesis must be understood. We need this kind of teaching in our churches and sunday school in order to understand better the people who wrote genesis and their purpose when they where writing the text. Congrats and my best regards because you take the time to publish this information and make it available to all of us. I jus saw a movie in Netflix about the Exodus and new evidences from a place called Avira and how wrong where many historians in dating the exodus 1200BCE and that event according to eviden took place much earlier in the middle kingdom and there is where the new positive evidence for the exodus is coming out. Regards and sorry for the typos and other errors.

IsaacBG, if this sort of thing interests you, you should consider joining he international Facebook forum The Bible and Anthropology. There we discuss many matters pertaining to the Bible in greater depth.

"January 16, 2012 at 9:37 AM Alice C. Linsley said...The Tower of Babel story speaks of real historical developments. Apparently, the linguistic divergence to which the story alludes began at least five generations before Abraham."

Hi Alice, Could you clarify how how the linquistic variation occurred before Babel? Thanks.

Genesis 11:1 speaks of one language with the same words/roots. All the peoples in the so-called "Table of Nations" are Afro-Asiatics and their archaic languages shared the same roots. The Afro-Asiatic language group is recognized by linguists as the oldest group.

I'm not a Bible literalist. I'm a biblical anthropologist who delves deeply into the biblical text. I do not proof text. Those who believe that "the various people groups (with their various languages, cultures, and distinctive physical characteristics, including skin color) arose as a result of God's supernatural judgment at the Tower of Babel" promote racism. If you hold that view, please go away.